Defining Mental Illness

Defining mental illness, battling the stigma and targeting treatment for those in need
Gundersen and our local partners are dedicated to educating the public on mental illnesses and the related stigma.

Our efforts include work with the La Crosse County chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) on:

Family to Family: 12-week education program facilitated by trained family members for family caregivers of individuals with severe mental illnesses. It is the only family-specific education program offered in the region.

NAMI Basics: 6-week education program specifically for parents of children with mental illness.

NAMI Parents and Teachers as Allies: General education program for parents and school professionals.

Did you know...

Each year a quarter of adults in the United States – more than 55 million people – suffer from a diagnosable mental health disorder. Less than a third of them get the treatment they need.

Part of addressing this challenge is to attack the stigma associated with mental illness, which causes the public to fear, reject, avoid and discriminate against people with mental illness.

"The stigmatization of individuals with mental illness represents a primary deterrent to prevention and treatment efforts." – The Burden of Mental Illness, 2011 La Crosse report